Zara Rutherford, 19, Becomes Youngest Pilot To Fly Solo Around The World

Zara Rutherford, who has dual British-Belgian nationality, landed at Kortrijk-Wevelgem Airport in western Belgium on Thursday. 

Zara Rutherford touched down at an airfield outside the Belgian town of Kortrijk (Getty Images)

New Delhi: Zara Rutherford, a 19-year-old pilot, has become the youngest woman to fly solo around the world, a report in the BBC said.

Rutherford, who has dual British-Belgian nationality, landed at Kortrijk-Wevelgem Airport in western Belgium on Thursday. 

Her journey spanned across 41 countries, over 52,000 kilometers and broke two Guinness World Records in the process.

Rutherford also holds the title for the first woman to circumnavigate the world in a microlight aircraft. She is also the first Belgian to fly around the world alone, the BBC report said.

Huge congratulations to our 2021 Head of Finlay, Zara Rutherford, who has just set a number of world records by completing her round-the-world flight! Super proud of her work to promote STEM subjects to girls around the world. #StSwithunsgirlsflyfurther #GirlsWhoCode @fly_zolo

— St Swithun's Finlay House (@StSwithunsFin) January 20, 2022

Previously, the youngest woman to fly solo around the world was American Shaesta Waiz in 2017. She was 30 years old then.

Rutherford started her journey on August 18, 2021, on a two-seater Shark Aero, one of the fastest lightweight aircraft that can reach speeds of up to 300km/h. 

She first stopped in the UK, Greenland, the Americas and Russia, south-east Asia, north to India, the Middle East and Egypt, and back to Europe, a report in The Guardian said.

After landing, she told reporters, "It's just really crazy, I haven't quite processed it."

 

 

 

 

 

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A post shared by Zara Rutherford (@fly.zolo)

Addressing a press conference, Rutherford said the hardest part was flying over Siberia. "It was extremely cold and if the engine was to stall I'd be hours away from rescue. I'm not sure I would have survived," BBC quoted her as saying.

Her journey from Mumbai to Dubai was a gruelling eight-hour flight. Due to a rare storm, she had to take a diversion to another airport 60 miles south of Dubai.

Both her parents are pilots, and her father flew for Britain's air force. Rutherford's former school, St Swithun's Finlay House, was among the first to congratulate her.

"Huge congratulations to our 2021 Head of Finlay, Zara Rutherford, who has just set a number of world records by completing her round-the-world flight! Super proud of her work to promote STEM subjects to girls around the world," it tweeted.